Agent Services Account

An agent services account (ASA) is the newer way for agents to access HMRC digital services. Initially it is being used for new HMRC digital agent services only. It is in use alongside the existing agent portal and doesn’t replace it. The current, familiar agent portal (HMRC online services for agents account - OSA) and agent credentials will continue to be used for existing HMRC online services for agents (income tax self assessment, employer PAYE and corporation tax) for some time yet.

A significant feature of the ASA is that each firm can and will have only one ASA. The ASA is linked to the UTR of the firm (income tax self assessment UTR for sole practitioners, partnership UTR for partnerships and corporation tax UTR for those trading as limited companies).

Many firms have several different OSA accounts for different offices, taxes etc. Once a firm has set up its ASA it will need to link the government gateway agent IDs for these OSA accounts to the new ASA. The government gateway agent IDs and OSAs will continue to be used for existing services.

The ASA is still in development and is used for the following services:

• VAT (other than VAT EU Refunds (for businesses established in Northern Ireland, EC Sales List and Notification of Vehicle Arrivals)
• MTD for income tax
• The Trust Registration Service
• Capital gains tax reporting for UK property
• Income record viewer

A detailed list of services available through the ASA is available on HMRC services for tax agents.

The link to set up an agent services account and the associated HMRC guidance is available on gov.uk: Get an HMRC agent services account. Once the ASA has been set up access if via Sign in to your agent services account.

It is possible to set up an ASA before setting up an OSA but it is more straightforward (ie, it is a fully online process cutting out the need for an exchange of letters with HMRC) to set up the OSA first and get authorisation for one client in place before setting up an ASA.

If an agent encounters a problem with setting up or using their ASA they should use the ‘Get help with this page’ link on the screen where the issue arises. This will generate a ticket for the relevant HMRC helpdesk which will respond to provide specific help with resolving the issue. If an agent prefers to phone HMRC the appropriate helpline is the Online Services Helpdesk.

• Sole practitioners operating as self-employed sole traders have expressed concern about providing their personal income tax UTR and the associated postcode when setting up their ASA. It is a requirement to provide the UTR but it is possible to set a different correspondence address for the firm; this option is provided at a later stage during the set up process.
• The process of setting up an ASA involves setting up a new government gateway user ID. It is important to make a note of these details when they appear on the screen as they cannot easily be retrieved later. These details will be needed to access the ASA and services available through the ASA and to set up and authorise agent MTD software. Care needs to be taken not to confuse the new user ID with existing government gateway user IDs.
• A new Agent Reference Number is allocated during the process and this also needs to be carefully recorded.
• Agents should consider carefully the email address to use when setting up the new government gateway ID and ASA. It may be appropriate to use a centralised email address that has some permanence.
• A fairly common issue encountered by agents when setting up their ASA is a mismatch between the postcode and the UTR. Agents should check that the postcode they provide is the one associated with the firm’s own UTR on HMRC’s records. In some cases, addresses are incorrectly set up in HMRC’s systems (often many years ago). The address may appear correct when printed on HMRC correspondence but if the postcode is not in the correct box on HMRC’s systems the agent will get an error message when they try to set up the ASA. This type of issue needs to be resolved individually for each firm by contacting HMRC.
• When setting up an ASA it is a requirement to provide details of the agent’s supervisor for Anti Money Laundering. This requirement prevents agents that provide only pro-bono services from setting up an ASA; ICAEW has raised this as an issue with HMRC.
• Overseas agents with no tax presence in the UK and no UTR or UK supervisor for anti-money laundering need to follow a slightly different process to set up an ASA. HMRC guidance on how to apply for an agent services account if you are not based in the UK includes details of the information that is required for overseas agents and explains that the application is subject to approval by HMRC.
• Once a firm has set up its ASA it will need to link its existing OSA accounts to the new ASA. This service to ‘link your current Self Assessment clients to this account’ is available from the ASA. The linking process sets up a dynamic link between the existing government gateway agent IDs and the new ASA. This allows agent-client relationships in the existing government gateway IDs to be recognised when accessing MTD services through the ASA (including access by MTD software). The linking process does not affect agent access to existing services using government gateway agent IDs and it does not enrol clients into any new services such as MTD.
• Client lists are not displayed in the ASA. This is a deliberate design feature – if a client list were to be available in the ASA it would allow easy access to all client records by all of the firm’s staff. HMRC is trialling access group functionality which allows firms to control access within the firm.
• Existing government gateway agent IDs will continue to be used for existing services in OSA accounts; access to these services is not affected by setting up the ASA or linking to it. It is, however, important to use the appropriate credentials and the correct link for the account being accessed.
• Internal tax departments or group tax managers that access online services as an agent may also need an ASA. ICAEW has asked HMRC for current guidance on how this can be achieved.
• Agents can update their ASA details by following the guidance on Updating your tax agent contact details with HMRC - GOV.UK